


tell me the thoughts that surround you

by ForASecondThereWedWon



Series: Spidey-shots, Spidey-shots, now they're done, thanks a lot <3 [44]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies)
Genre: Engagement, Established Relationship, F/M, News Media, Prompt Fic, Protective Michelle Jones, Rumors, Secret Relationship, Tumblr Prompt
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-12
Updated: 2020-09-12
Packaged: 2021-03-06 15:21:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 778
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26431087
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ForASecondThereWedWon/pseuds/ForASecondThereWedWon
Summary: Rumours are swirling online about Spider-Man's new ring. MJ knows the truth.
Relationships: Michelle Jones/Peter Parker
Series: Spidey-shots, Spidey-shots, now they're done, thanks a lot <3 [44]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1368034
Comments: 16
Kudos: 96
Collections: The Spideychelle Shuffle





	tell me the thoughts that surround you

**Author's Note:**

> Based on the following lyrics from "Where Do You Go To (My Lovely)?" by Peter Sarstedt:
> 
> _They say that when you get married/It’ll be to a millionaire/But they don’t realize where you came from/And I wonder if they really care, or give a damn_

MJ carries a wild bouquet of flowers―some inspiration for the children’s art class she teaches as a volunteer at her local art gallery. She carries them upright, like a bride, as she walks down the sidewalk, but when her phone buzzes in her other hand, the bouquet tilts. When she lifts it to see the screen and finds out the persistent vibrating isn’t a single incoming call but an avalanche of notifications, the bouquet swivels to blooms-down.

She tracks Spider-Man alerts. Normally, stories trickle in. A mix of earned praise and unjustifiable criticism. Today, well, the articles are popping up like a domino train in reverse. Somebody bumps into MJ’s shoulder and petals scatter across the concrete. She realizes she stopped walking and moves to tuck herself out of the way in the doorway of a jewellery shop before she continues reading the first non-crackpot article her phone alerted her about. Spider-Man was photographed rounding up stray dogs in Central Park after an overly-ambitious dogwalker dropped half the leashes of the dozen dogs they were attempting to walk at the same time. This article doesn’t care so much about the dogs. MJ doubts any of the others do either. As she scrolls through and finds the blurry zoomed-in images, she can see the cause of all the online commotion. They’ve spotted a ring on Spidey’s finger.

Comments are usually toxic, but MJ’s so curious that she takes a peek and hopes for the best. Checking turns out to be _so_ worth it. People are speculating on when and where Spider-Man could’ve gotten married, but mostly, they’re trying to guess to _whom_. An actress! Someone who understands what it’s like to live different lives in public and in private. No, others argue, an athlete! Someone who can keep up with the city’s high-flying, adventurous hero at the gym, walking the flights of the Chrysler Building while Spider-Man climbs it from the outside, or scaling Mount Everest! MJ laughs until she gets into the truly ridiculous―suggestions like Kate Middleton, who’s apparently left William for a high-profile guy with fewer castles but more hair. Then, she rolls her eyes and jams her phone into her pocket.

It’s not even a wedding ring, or any kind of ring, by traditional standards. Maybe they’d know better if they had sharper photos to analyze, or maybe people will think and say what they want, facts be damned. What MJ was thinking about yesterday was the same thing she’s thought about for months: a way to tell Peter, to _explain_ to him, that they’re going to be together for the rest of their lives. What she wanted was to communicate the way this certainty has settled inside her like it _is_ her, and her body’s just the protective layer this precious conviction is wrapped in. So she proposed.

She didn’t buy Peter an engagement ring for three reasons. First, all of her planning was on what to say and she never actually thought about the accessory that typically accompanies the big question. Second, Peter would probably lose the ring and feel terrible. Third, they can’t afford it.

When MJ’s pictured getting married to Peter, there’s not much to it. A few familiar faces, a justice of the peace, and whichever one of her colourful dresses she feels like putting on that day. It’s not just about the expense and drama of idealized modern weddings. She simply doesn’t _need_ more. In her most lavish dreams, she gets her biggest thrill holding Peter’s hands in hers.

Of course, they’ll do rings _then_ , but when MJ asked him to be her husband last night, she did find that she felt a little empty-handed. It was Peter’s solution to very delicately craft a simple band from web-fluid. Every time he slips into the suit, it’ll be on his hand, too sticky to drop from a hundred feet in the air. She thought that was perfect. She thinks his homemade ring and her overthought and ramblingly-executed proposal and the wedding they’ll have on the cheap were and will be perfect. This is who they are. The ceremony she pictures, the scraps of paper she’s written bits and pieces of her potential vows on, they aren’t things the media would ever be interested in. The press doesn’t know them and that’s ok. Peter will be the only man who thinks she’s better than a duchess, she’ll be the first and last person to kiss his mouth and know he’s Spider-Man, and those things are ok too.

MJ steps back into the flow of foot traffic and raises her bouquet, clasping it with both hands, like a bride. For practice.


End file.
